Our Community

July 2015California State Assembly Passage of AB 96!

Last month, we hit an incredible milestone, where the bill that would close a large loophole in California’s current ban on sales of ivory and rhinoceros horn passed the California Assembly and it will now move to the State Senate! The bill, AB 96, introduced in January, will extend the state’s current ivory ban to include pieces imported into the state before June 1, 1977, which are currently exempt from the ban. David Rio, in conjunction with our partners at IFAW, feels strongly that the lives of these majestic and intelligent animals are worth far more than the trinkets carved from their tusks. Join us today and support the California Senate to take quick action to pass this legislation. For more information on this bill, click
here.

June 2015David Rio exhibits at Coffee Fest in Chicago, Illinois in June!

David Rio will be attending Coffee Fest Chicago held at McCormick Place from June 5-7. Viewed as one of the industry’s top performing trade shows, Coffee Fest has been serving the specialty coffee and gourmet tea industry since 1992. Stop by Booth #621 and say hello to our team and try a sample of our award winning Tea Frost premium tea frappe line
and of course, our signature Tiger Spice Chai®.

Apr 2015David Rio takes home two awards from the SCAA Expo in Seattle!

April’s Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) Expo was a huge success for David Rio! Tea Frost our premium tea-based frappe line, was a show stopper, winning Best New Product award in the Specialty Prepared Tea or Chai Beverage and Beverage Mix Category and also selected as the People’s Choice Winner for Best New Product in the same category! We are thrilled to share these accomplishments with you and look forward to innovating more exceptional products for our customers and fans. To find out more about the awards and other category winners, click here. To check out images from the show, follow us on our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages!

David Rio is proud to exhibit again at the
Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) Expo from April 9-12 in Seattle, WA at Booth #4025. This event marks the nation's largest coffee industry gathering of the year and is the perfect place to connect with new businesses and gain visibility on new products and ideas! Stop by and say hello to our team and try the latest and greatest from our new premium tea-based frappe line, Tea Frost! Our
Chocolate Assam, and Japanese Matcha! flavors, are guaranteed to be a show stopper and we are very excited to be offering samples after receiving much positive feedback at the Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco this year! When you stop by the booth, please don’t miss the chance to try other David Rio award-winning chai products, including our signature Tiger Spice Chai®,Cub Chai Microbrew Concentrate, and all natural, vegan Power Chai® Matcha! We look forward to seeing our international partners and making new friends! To find out more about what attendees and bloggers are saying about our Tea Frost Line, check out our Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook pages!

Feb 2015Chai Bar by David Rio opening its doors in Spring 2015!

Construction has begun for what will soon be known as the Chai Bar by David Rio, the first flagship retail location and chai bar concept developed by David Rio in San Francisco! The Chai Bar will be located on the ground floor of 1019 Market Street, a beautiful historic building erected in 1909, surrounded by innovative companies, such as Twitter, Uber, and Spotify, and just a few blocks from Union Square. The building was recently renovated by the cloud based help desk company, Zendesk, which moved its headquarters in July into the 7 stories, 73,000 square feet, above the Chai Bar. With a rustic-yet-modern interior incorporating wood and original exposed brick, the 2,600 square foot Chai Bar will serve a full range of David Rio chai products, as well as coffee and other tea-infused enticements. East will meet West as the menu will offer unique Japanese inspired food along with classic café fare. Stay tuned for up-to-date information and images of the construction progress on our social media pages. We anticipate that the creativity and excitement will transform our location into one of San Francisco’s adored hotspots. To learn more about the Chai Bar, check out an article covered in SF Eater!

Feb 2015David Rio exhibits at Coffee Fest, Atlanta!

David Rio will be exhibiting at Coffee Fest, in Atlanta, GA, February 6th-8th at Booth #524. Stop by and say hello to our team and try the latest and greatest from our new premium tea-based frappe line, Tea Frost, launching in March! Our Japanese Matcha flavor is guaranteed to be a show stopper and we are very excited to be offering samples after receiving much positive feedback at the Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco! When you stop by the booth, please don’t miss the chance to try other David Rio award-winning chai products, including our signature Tiger Spice Chai®, Cub Chai Microbrew Concentrate, and all natural, vegan Power Chai® Matcha! We look forward to seeing our friends and making new ones! To find out more about what attendees and bloggers are saying about our Tea Frost Line, check out our Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook pages!

David Rio will be sponsoring and attending a benefit on February 17th held by its partner, IFAW (International Fund for Animal Welfare), to raise funds for Kenya’s Amboseli Elephant Project. David Rio will also offer samples of Elephant Vanilla Chai™ to guests and speakers attending the event in honor of the elephants of Amboseli National Park. IFAW’s fundraiser at Hotel Palomar in Los Angeles hopes to raise more than $2 million over the next three years to meet their commitment to save the Kitenden Corridor of Amboseli National Park and its surrounding ecosystem. One of the main reasons that this project is important to IFAW and David Rio is that 1,100 of the 1,400 magnificent elephants of Amboseli National Park will perish if the land cannot be protected against human encroachment and/or poachers. In addition, this project will be used as a model for IFAW’s future projects throughout Africa and Asia. To learn more about the Amboseli Elephant Project, click here. To learn more about David Rio’s animal welfare initiatives, click here.

Jan 2015David Rio exhibits at Winter Fancy Food Show Jan 11-13th!

David Rio will be exhibiting at the upcoming Winter Fancy Food Show, Booth #470, held at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, CA from January 11-13, 2015. At the show, we will officially announce the debut of our new premium tea frappe line, Tea Frost, available in 2.5 lb/1.13 kg foodservice canisters. Stop by at our booth, where we will be handing out samples of our sure-hit Tea Frost variety, Japanese Matcha, which offers a fresh, fortified taste of premium matcha powder from the Nishio region of Japan. In addition to the Japanese Matcha, the Tea Frost flavors on display will be our rich Chocolate Assam, invigorating Earl Grey, refreshing English Breakfast, and our Spiced Chai, based on David Rio’s signature Tiger Spice Chai®. If you are planning to attend the show, please visit our booth to meet our team to check out our new Tea Frost line, as well as our award-winning chai products, including Tiger Spice Chai®, Cub Chai Microbrew Concentrate, and all natural, vegan
Power Chai® Matcha! We look forward to seeing our friends and making new ones!

12.01.14David Rio’s Annual Neighborhood Cleanup

David Rio has a passion for giving back to the community at large, and with the holiday season in mind, our entire team participated in our second annual Neighborhood Cleanup on November 21st. We gathered with gloves, trash bags and grabbers and hit the streets of San Francisco, collaboratively filling 14 large bags of trash in less than two hours! We had a great time and enjoyed beautifying our beloved city. To see images, and to stay connected with our initiatives year round, be sure to like us on our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts. Happy Holidays from the David Rio team!

12.01.14NEW Video Series “Chai It All by David Rio” coming 2015!

The year 2015 will bring many new excitements from David Rio, and we will kick it off with a new YouTube video series, “Chai It All by David Rio”, scheduled to launch in January! The “Chai It All by David Rio” video series was born with the intention of offering educational tools to consumers, baristas and café owners on how to prepare David Rio products at home or in cafés. Over the course of the year, we will share jam packed chai recipes, which will include instructional videos hosted by our very own Chai-rector of Sales, Erin-Kate Whitcomb and directed by Brand Marketing Manager, Jodet Ghougassian. The series will provide informative and entertaining ways to engage with our line of products, and we hope the viewers will find the videos both engaging and useful in the years to come. We look forward to sharing them with you and hearing your feedback, so stay tuned!

11.01.14The Chai Bar by David Rio is seeking a General Manager!

That's right! David Rio is hiring a General Manager for its upcoming flagship location, “Chai Bar by David Rio,” opening in spring 2015! We are currently accepting resumes for this very key position. Check out our posting, tell your friends, and if interested, apply for an opportunity to lead a creative, innovative, and fun new space! We simply can’t wait to open our doors next year and start serving our delicious chai! For more details or to apply for this position, click here.

10.01.14Say NO to ivory!

The Annual March for Elephants was held on October 4th in San Francisco as well as across the US and in countries all over the world to raise awareness of the depleting habitats of these majestic animals. It is estimated that less than 300,000 elephants survive today. Africa loses four elephants to poachers every hour, each day of the year. David Rio is an avid supporter of elephants and we work closely with IFAW to support their on-the-ground efforts in fighting the ivory trade. To find out how you can be involved in supporting, click here.

09.01.14David Rio’s Chai Blitz has come to a successful completion!

Our beloved Chai-oneers, Keegan and Andrew, have completed their eight-week San Francisco initiative, paying a visit to over 200 cafés, cruising in the Chaimobile around town with our social icon, Chaiger, while greatly elevating David Rio’s San Francisco brand awareness. Through this initiative, we saw significant growth in our social media presence, opened numerous San Francisco accounts, and met friends and fans across the Bay Area. Stay tuned and follow us on Facebook for future initiatives. The Chai-oneers will be greatly missed and until their return back to San Francisco, we thank them for all of their efforts!

08.01.14Chaiger loves our San Francisco Chai Blitz!

Chaiger, our Chai Blitz icon, is very busy this month! He is visiting cafes, finding new fans, and meeting locals throughout San Francisco with the Chai-oneers, while riding shotgun on our infamous Chaimobile. Follow Chaiger on Facebook today, and experience what he has brewing in the months to come. Stay tuned.

07.01.14 The adventure continues with David Rio's Chai Blitz

David Rio and its Chai-oneers have been very busy with the Chai Blitz in San Francisco. We have continued to populate different neighborhoods with David Rio chai by parking the infamous Chaimobile, visiting local cafes, meeting with baristas and managers, giving away samples, and connecting with fans. To learn more about David Rio Chai Blitz, click here.

06.01.14David Rio's San Francisco Chai Blitz!

June is a big month for David Rio! We welcome two local brand ambassadors, Keegan Cohen and Andrew Schleeter, who will spread their enthusiasm for David Rio Chai throughout San Francisco during its 8 week "Chai Blitz." Follow Keegan and Andrew - our "Chai-oneers" as they cruise their way through the summer via Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. To learn more about David Rio Chai Blitz, click here.

David Rio is sponsoring the upcoming 7th Annual
Critter Classic Golf Tournament
by the Peninsula Humane Society and SPCA
as a fundraiser for the shelter animals on May 19th. This fundraising event will be held at the scenic
Sharon Heights Golf & Country Club
in Menlo Park, CA, nestled among the beautiful tall pines and old oaks atop. The proceeds donated from David Rio will go toward their Hope Program, that aids in getting strayed animals - which would otherwise not be accepted by shelters - into adoptable conditions. The Hope Program provides these animals with much needed medical care, behavioral rehabilitation, and lots of TLC so that they can get the second chance they deserve. David Rio is proud of its long standing partnership with the Peninsula Humane Society and for supporting its Hope Program this month!

05.01.14 David Rio Exhibits at Coffee Fest St Louis 5/30-6/01!

David Rio will be attending Coffee Fest St. Louis in support of our distributor,
Upper Midwest Gourmet, from May 30th through June 1st. Viewed as one of the industry’s top performing trade shows, Coffee Fest has been serving the specialty coffee and gourmet tea industry since 1992. Stop by Booth #139 and say hello to our Director of Sales, Erin-Kate Whitcomb, and try a sample of our newest tea-based frappe variety of Tea Frost.

04.01.14 David Rio supports Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month!

In honor of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month, David Rio will be raising awareness to the cause by donating 5% of online sales to their partners at the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA. The funds will be donated to their anti-cruelty program. To find out more about David Rio animal welfare initiatives, click here.

04.01.14Tea Magazine Loves David Rio!

David Rio was featured in Tea Magazine's March/April issue for its philanthropic efforts in animal welfare. We appreciate the opportunity to share our passion about protecting endangered species. David Rio was showcased among many other well-known chai and tea companies in the industry because of its partnership with IFAW and support of animal welfare initiatives. View the article here.

04.01.14 David Rio Exhibits at Annual SCAA Show in Seattle, WA (4/24-4/27)

Our team will be exhibiting at the 26th Annual
SCAA (Specialty Coffee Association of America) Expo April 24-April 27. This event marks the nation’s largest coffee industry gathering of the year, and is a fantastic place to connect with businesses to brew innovative products and ideas. David Rio is especially excited to be officially launching its new tea based frappe line, Tea Frost, and its first Spiced Chai variety at the show. Visit us at Booth #4025, say hello to our team and don’t miss out on our new deliciously ice blended goodness and samples of our signature Tiger Spice Chai®. Exhibitors and attendees can register on the SCAA website. We look forward to seeing you there!

03.01.14 David Rio travels to Dubai for Annual Gulfood Trade Show (2/23-2/27)

For the fifth consecutive year, David Rio will be exhibiting at the Gulfood Trade Show held in the remarkable and historic city of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates from February 23-27. David Rio will be exhibiting with our UAE distribution partner International Distribution Trading Company (IDTC) based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The show has been identified as one of the most vital food, drink, and hospitality trade shows in the Middle East and globally, where more than 150 countries from around the world participate each year. If your travels happen to cross Dubai, please stop by to meet Rio and try a sample of our hot chai at hall 2 Stand 226. We look forward to seeing you, and stay tuned as we will be posting images on our Facebook Page from the show.

02.01.14David Rio exhibits at Coffee Fest, NY! (3/7-3/9)

David Rio will be exhibiting at the annual Coffee Fest in New York at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center from March 7-9 at Booth #424. Coffee Fest has been serving the specialty coffee and gourmet tea industries since 1992. The show is viewed by most as the best trade show in America and around the world particularly for those involved with retailing coffee, tea and related products. David Rio will be sampling our newest products, including our beloved Maple Moose Chai! If you happen to be at the show, please stop by our booth and say hello to our Director of Sales, Erin-Kate Whitcomb and sample our products. We look forward to seeing you.

01.01.14David Rio exhibits at the Annual SF Fancy Food Show!

Join David Rio at the Fancy Food Show at San Francisco’s Moscone Center, January 19th-21st. David Rio will be making a big splash with our newest addition, Maple Moose Chai, as well as showcasing the vegan, all natural Power Chai with Matcha. If you are planning to be at the show, please visit our Booth #1050 to meet Rio and the rest of the team, and try a sample of your favorite David Rio chai varieties. For more information on the Fancy Food Show, log on to their website. We look forward to seeing our friends and making new ones!

David Rio is gathering its team and hitting the streets to beautify the city of San Francisco by carrying out a neighborhood clean-up on Wednesday before Thanksgiving this year. This cleanup event was an idea suggested by our Marketing Manager of 4 years, Michele Thorne, who is sadly leaving David Rio this month. Prior to this position, she was the Wellness & Outreach Director at our affiliated company, Soma Beverage Company for 3 years. The David Rio team will be showing our thanks and appreciation at this event to Michele, who has contributed to the brand with her creative marketing initiatives, including website content and YouTube video series, and maintaining a solid relationship with our philanthropic partners at IFAW. Good luck and best wishes,Michele!

11.01.13November is Annual Baking Day for David Rio!

Each year, the entire David Rio team gathers to bake batches of delicious chai goods for our selected customers, courtesy of recipes created by our Director of Operations, Kiyoe. On November 20th, we will be baking the David Rio Marble Chai Bread with Maple Moose Chai, the newest member of our chai family. The David Rio team will mix, bake, and taste the flavor-packed chai delights at the La Cocina Community Kitchen so we can send a special thank you chai gift to our customers and enjoy this annual activity as a group. Stay tuned to our facebook page for recipes and photos, and join the David Rio Chai Bake-a-thon from your home!

08.01.13David Rio Adds a Touch of Spice to its Canadian Market

We are thrilled to announce that starting this month, all 8 David Rio Endangered Species Chai varieties, including its signature variety Tiger Spice Chai&reg, will be launched in 18 Sobeys stores weekly in the Canadian Market! Sobeys is one of the leading supermarket chains in all of Canada; the second largest with over 1,500 supermarkets operating under a variety of banners. David Rio will be included in 225 of those top Sobeys stores as one of their newest brands for specialty tea offerings. Among the many Sobeys stores that will be bringing in David Rio Chai, some of the first to offer all 9 varieties will include the locations in Toronto, Stratord, Whitby and Woodchester. David Rio is very excited about this new opportunity and thrilled to be sharing our specialty products with such a growing market such as Canada. We look forward to hearing about the excitement from Canadian customers in the months to come. Stay tuned.

06.01.13David Rio Attends Coffee Fest Chicago, Chicago, IL (6/7-6/9)

We are honored to be attending this years Coffee Fest Chicago at Navy Pier, in support of our distributor, Upper Midwest Gourmet. Since 1992, Coffee Fest has been serving the specialty coffee and gourmet tea industries. Viewed by most as the best trade show in America and around the world specifically for those involved with retailing coffee, tea, and related products. Coffee Fest continues to evolve and stay at the forefront of emerging trends. We will be handing out samples of hot chai latte, made with our signature Tiger Spice Chai&reg , as well as ice blended Tortoise Green Tea Chai and Toucan Mango Chai, perfect for the warm summer weather approaching. Stop by Upper Midwest Gourmet’s Booths 200 & 202 for a taste of one or all…we’ll see you in Chicago!

05.01.13David Rio Exhibits at the 2013 Caffe Culture Show in Olympia, London (5/15-5/16)

For the fourth consecutive year, David Rio is delighted to attend and exhibit at the 2013 Caffe Culture Show in Olympia, London! Once again, we will proudly attend in support of our UK Distribution Partner, Coffee Creations. This show is the UK's leading café bar trade event that provides a first-class business resource to cafés looking to expand and improve their specialty tea and coffee offering. If you will be at the show this year, please stop by our Booth #H10, give a jolly hello, and enjoy a sample of our signature Tiger Spice Chai&reg latte and our Iced Tortoise Green Tea Smoothie! We look forward to seeing you there.

Do you work in the foodservice or hospitality industry in the Midwest? If so, David Rio would love to see you at the Wisconsin Restaurant Expo in Milwaukee! Once again, we will proudly be attending in support of our distribution partner, Upper Midwest Gourmet. The Expo provides an exciting opportunity for those in the foodservice and restaurant field to come together to discuss business solutions and new ideas. If you are participating in the show, please visit us at Upper Midwest Gourmet's Booth #748 from Monday, March 11th-Wednesday, March 13th and sample our signature Tiger Spice Chai&reg. To register as an attendee, please visit www.wirestaurant.org/expo/index.php. See you there!

For the fourth consecutive year, David Rio will be exhibiting at the Gulfood trade show, held in the amazing city of Dubai. David Rio will be offering samples of our signature Tiger Spice Chai&reg in support of our UAE distribution partner, Al Rifai. Gulfood is identified as one of the most important food, drink, and hospitality trade shows in the Middle East and worldwide, and more than 150 countries from around the world participate each year. If you happen to be in the UAE, please stop by to visit and sample hot chai at our stand #A2-51.We look forward to meeting you!

So far, this year is proving to be the year of the baby! On January 4th, our Director of Operations, Kiyoe, delivered her first baby, Hiroki. He is a happy, handsome, and healthy baby boy, weighing in at 7lbs 3oz. To boot, Matthias Paskowsky, our long-time friend and David Rio's importer for the European Union (IFBI), ALSO welcomed a new baby boy named Friedrich Anton ("Fritz") on New Year's Day. We send our congratulations, or 'omedetou' (in Japanese), to both Kiyoe and Matthias and their families! Once we get pictures, you can check out these cuties on our Facebook page. Stay connected...

12.01.12David Rio Chai Baking Day

Each year, the David Rio team comes together in the spirit of the holidays to bake special David Rio chai treats for our wonderful customers around the world. This season, we have strayed from our Power Chai&reg Banana Bread with walnuts and decided to test the versatility of David Rio chai. To celebrate a California grown crop - almonds - we made a Power Chai&reg Almond Brittle at a local commercial kitchen, La Cocina! Our very own, and soon-to-be-mom, Director of Operations, Kiyoe Nakazawa, created and refined this new recipe and we want to share it with you! The crunchy, delicious chai brittle makes a great stocking stuffer and homemade gift, crafted with love and chai that you can share with friends and family this holiday. Check our our photos on Facebook.

11.15.12David Rio is a 2013 U.S. Barista Championship Regional Sponsor

For the second year in a row, David Rio is sponsoring the 6th Annual U.S. Regional Barista Championships. The events are in partnership with the SCAA, the governing body of the United States Barista Championship. The United States Barista Championship, with its focus on excellence, encourages and recognizes professional achievement in the art and skill of espresso beverage preparation and service. Like the SCAA, we too believe that a barista is a coffee professional who has the experience and training to deliver coffee and espresso-based beverages to customers that demonstrate craftsmanship and quality, creating a culinary experience for the customer and with David Rio chai, too! That's why in 2013, David Rio is proud to support baristas from all over the U.S. at this amazing and fun competition! Registration is still open - we hope to see you there!

11.01.12David Rio is Delighted to Cheer the San Francisco Giants - 2012 World Series Champions

As fellow San Franciscans, the entire David Rio staff is thrilled to celebrate the San Francisco Giants baseball team as this year's World Series Champions! That's right. Besides the fact that we share the same, amazing city, as well as the same festive logo color, we are excited to welcome our baseball champions home after their second World Series title win. As loyal fans, we have been attending games, showing our team spirit and even drive around town with the Giants flags atop our orange Chaimobile. Needless to say, we are proud, very proud of the entire San Francisco Giants baseball team and management. Woohoo!

For two weeks straight, Rio and our Sales Manager Adam Green served over 4,200 David Rio chai sample cups to the shoppers of Loblaws Maple Leaf Gardens flagship store in Toronto, Canada. Rio and Adam snapped many great pictures with wonderful customers, which you can find posted on our Facebook fan page. David Rio products, which include our signature Tiger Spice Chai&reg, Orca Spice and Tortoise Green Tea are now available at this hockey stadium turned flagship store and we will keep you posted as our chai becomes available in other Loblaws locations real soon. To find out more about Loblaws Maple Leaf Gardens please visit their website today!

10.01.12David Rio sponsors MANE, Providence, RI (10/12 - 10/14)

David Rio is pleased to sponsor the MANE Coffee Conference, October 12-14, in Providence, RI. Hosted by the good people at New Harvest Coffee Roasters, this is one of David Rio's favorite industry related events, and this year promises to be as amazing as last year. Keynote speaker, James Hoffman, the 2007 World Barista Champion will be on hand to welcome regional baristas as they spend a fun-filled weekend sharpening their skills, networking, and sharing knowledge. To register or to find out more about the Mid-Atlantic-Northeast (MANE) Coffee Conference, visit www.manecoffee.com.

09.15.12David Rio is Council Sponsor for the Barista Nation Los Angeles Event (9/15)

David Rio is proud to be a Council Sponsor for Barista Nation Los Angeles, this coming Saturday, September 15, 2012, at Beyond the Grind, in Anaheim, California. Beyond the Grind is the leading specialty coffee support distribution company in Southern California and is a David Rio distributor servicing Orange and Los Angeles Counties. This event promises to be one of the great barista and coffee events of the year, with top Los Angeles roasters, such as Sol Salzer from City Bean, and top baristas, such as Heather Perry and Michael Phillips, presenting relevant and forward thinking ideas to the Southern California barista community. And of course, our very own National Sales Manager, Brian Cornelsen, will be there too! With a keynote address from Peter Guiliano, founder of Counter Culture, and a peek at the Stella di Caffe, from UNIC Espresso machines, this event is expected to be one of the best educational opportunities for the Southern California coffee community in years. To register, or for more information, email baristanation@gmail.com.

David Rio is thrilled to attend the upcoming Canadian Coffee & Tea Show at the International Centre in Toronto, Canada. Alongside two of our newest Canadian distribution partners, Stillcreek Distributing Ltd., and Morala Trading, David Rio will be offering samples of hot David Rio Tiger Spice Chai&reg Latte. The show is designed to meet the needs of independent coffee & tea retailers, restauranteurs, foodservice operators, chain operators, and buyers. The Show offers an extensive educational program geared for new entrepreneurs, independents, and chain operators alike. So, if you are in the Toronto area, stop by Booth #341, meet Rio, David Rio's founder, and Adam Green, David Rio's Canadian Sales Manager, and enjoy a warm cup of David Rio chai! See you there.